Concert Review:
La Doña at the Constellation Room, Santa Ana, Southern California
by Aztec Parrot, host of Radio Aztlán on Fridays from 8pm – 10pm (PST)
photo credit: PHTOMAN
In English, La Doña means the well respected woman of the house. On Wednesday night at the
Constellation Room in Santa Ana, La Doña proved why that name befits her best. She and her
multi-versatile scaled down quartet of musicians brought a treasure full of genres to play with as La Doña transformed the room into a playground filled with fun and dance.
Her 12 song set flexed it’s versatility from the beginning with the doo wop group harmony of
“Loser Girl,” and plenty of the songs from her latest release “Can’t Eat Clout”, an independent
production which reflects her La Misíon Chicana strength and drive. Her musical career began
early in her life growing up in a musical family and community household. So she feels
comfortable on stage as bandleader and arranger. Her confidence rings strongest when she
embraces the vibe between her band members. They perform in a tranquil constitution as their
instruments speak lovely sounds that bridge people together through music. Along with her
salsa cumbia reggaeton style of dance floor shakers, she included a cover of “Sabor A Mi”, the
classic bolero for lovers and those who ever loved.
In “Cuando Se Van”, the opening montuno rhythm morphs into a Middle Eastern dabke while La
Doña throws un grito “¡Que Viva Palestina!” and pleas for a cease fire. What insures for the rest
of the evening is a barrage of Bay Area hyphy beats collaged with cumbia, tejano blues with
soul, and what La Doña declares “I can do whatever the fuck I want!” And what she did was
sing to us in the caring manner of a beloved teacher. Her confidence and stage presence has
been refined over years while she performed with La Familia Govea and various Bay Area
groups in and out of San Francisco’s Mission District. And the multiple influences from Doo
Wop, dembow, hyphy, cumbia, and even Middle Eastern when mixed together can not only
produce an uplifting feeling of newness but also a dance floor sense of hope for the world. That
is her magic and medicine. If giving hope and a good time is her magic, let La Doña run the
house!
photo credit: PHTOMAN
